Line upon Line

Teaching and Learning in the Church

Speaking retrospectively about the worship of his people, the Nephites, Moroni recounted that they “did meet together oft, to fast and to pray, and to speak one with another concerning the welfare of their souls” (Moroni 6:5).

This vignette exemplifies what has seemed to be characteristic of the people of God in all ages. We do “meet together oft” to teach and learn from one another. In fact, teaching and learning are a fundamental part of the gospel of Jesus Christ and have been present in His Church from the beginning.

As every faithful Latter-day Saint can attest, learning and teaching occupy the bulk of the three-hours in our weekly Sabbath Day worship together in local units throughout the Church.

The Prophet Joseph Smith underscored the importance of teaching and learning. In an April 10, 1842, discourse in Nauvoo, Illinois, he declared, “A man is saved no faster than he gets knowledge, for if he does not get knowledge, he will be brought into captivity by some evil power in the other world, as evil spirits will have more knowledge, and consequently more power than many men who are on the earth. Hence it needs revelation to assist us and give us knowledge of the things of God” (quoted in Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith, Chapter 22).